Space-Time Adventure Tour · New York, NY
Central Park, NYC
Discover the fascinating history and peculiar curiosities of New York City's world famous Central Park on this fun—and occasionally existentially upsetting—guided tour through space & time!
- Price
- Free
- Duration
- About an hour
- Route
- About 1.5 miles, mostly flat with two moderate hills near the Met
- Platform
- iOS
- Starts at
- Inventor's Gate
About this tour
Your iPhone becomes an official Space-Time Adventure Tours Walkie-Talkie Time Machine, and a slightly unreliable AI tour guide leads you from Inventor’s Gate to Cleopatra’s Needle. Along the way you’ll meet Clarence and Penny, a pair of physicists from Applied Theoretical Mechanics who are running out of time (literally) and could use your help finding three missing time crystals.
Between missions you’ll get the real story of the park: how Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won the argument for a public park when every grand European park was gated for aristocrats; why Emma Stebbins’ Angel of the Waters commemorates a 41-mile aqueduct; and how a 200-ton Egyptian obelisk ended up behind the Met thanks to four and a half men named Henry.
The tour uses Niantic’s Visual Positioning System to place augmented-reality content at centimeter accuracy, so when you scan the Alice in Wonderland statue, the Jabberwock appears exactly where it should: on the Mad Hatter’s hat. It is equal parts delightful and scary.
Good to know: the route includes two moderately steep stretches near the Met and a few steps at Conservatory Water and Bethesda Terrace; the narration calls out stair-free alternatives at each. Bring a charged phone and headphones, and keep an eye on the path while you look at the screen.
Trailer
Where the tour takes you
Inventor's Gate
Why there's no gate at Inventor's Gate, and how Olmsted and Vaux won the fight to make Central Park a park for everyone.
Samuel F. B. Morse statue
Dot dash dash dot dash: a bronze inventor, a coded message, and the theme of communication that ties the whole route together.
Conservatory Water
The model-boat pond and the Hans Christian Andersen statue, whose Ugly Duckling is, frankly, cute.
Alice in Wonderland statue
George Delacorte's 1959 tribute to his wife Margarita — and, if you scan the Mad Hatter's hat just right, a Jabberwock.
Bethesda Terrace & Fountain
Emma Stebbins' Angel of the Waters, the Croton Aqueduct, and the beating heart of Central Park seen through a parallel timeline.
Glade Arch & Greywacke Arch
Two of the park's 22 one-of-a-kind arches, and a walk past the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Cleopatra's Needle
A 3,500-year-old, 200-ton obelisk, four and a half men named Henry, and a time capsule nobody has opened. The final stop.
Getting to the start
Inventor's Gate
5th Avenue & East 72nd Street, New York, NY 10021
Enter Central Park at 72nd Street on the east side. The in-app map will guide you there; the tour begins when you arrive.
Open in Google MapsAccessibility
- Non-visual gameplay for blind and low-vision players, developed with blind media artist Andy Slater
- Spatial audio beacons, GPS announcements, verbal directions and haptics assist wayfinding
- VoiceOver compatible; always-on captions
- Stair-free alternatives are called out in the narration at Conservatory Water and Bethesda Terrace
Questions people ask
How long is the Central Park tour?
Plan on about an hour at a relaxed pace, walking roughly 1.5 miles from Inventor's Gate at 72nd Street to Cleopatra's Needle behind the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
How much does it cost?
The app and the Central Park tour are free on the Apple App Store.
Where does the tour start?
At Inventor's Gate, the Central Park entrance at 5th Avenue and East 72nd Street. Open the app anywhere and its map will guide you to the starting point.
Do I need headphones?
Headphones or earbuds are strongly recommended. The tour uses spatial audio for storytelling and for wayfinding.
Does it work on Android?
Not yet. Space-Time Adventure Tours is currently available for iPhone (iOS 14 or later).
Is it OK for kids?
Yes. The tour is rated 4+ and the humor plays for adults and kids alike. Younger children should tour with an adult.
Can I pause and come back?
Yes. The big red button pauses the tour and opens a detailed map. Keep the app open if you can; closing it may mean re-locating your space-time coordinates when you return.
Stories from this tour
The Alice in Wonderland Statue: A Publisher, His Wife, and a Very Big Mushroom
Since 1959 kids have climbed all over it. Fewer people know the Mad Hatter has George Delacorte's face.
The Angel of the Waters: Why Bethesda Fountain Celebrates a Pipe
The only sculpture in Olmsted and Vaux's original plan was made by a woman, and it honors an aqueduct.
Cleopatra's Needle and the Four and a Half Men Named Henry
It is about 5,500 miles and 3,500 years out of place. Getting it here took ships with holes cut in the side.
Why There's No Gate at Inventor's Gate
Every entrance to Central Park has a name and none of them have a gate. That was the point.